


Switch Up

by Dopple_Girl



Category: Gravity Falls, Welcome to Night Vale
Genre: Crossover, Gen, M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-01-30
Updated: 2016-06-13
Packaged: 2018-05-17 03:57:34
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 4,256
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5853184
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Dopple_Girl/pseuds/Dopple_Girl
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Bill Cipher is bored. So, stumbling across a strange desert community seems perfect to him. Just to shake things up a bit, he decides to take Pine tree and tattoos and have them switch for a little while. This is going to be fun.</p><p>Gravity Falls: After A Tale of Two Stan's but before The Last Mabelcorn<br/>Welcome to Night Vale: After Episode 70A (Taking Off) and 70B (The Review)</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

> If you do not listen to Welcome to Night Vale, understand that time is weird. And I also highly recommend it. For everyone else, this part takes place right after Episode 16(The Phone Call). Like, the day after. Also I'm not saying you should turn around, but your body might want to rotate itself 180 degrees. For security reasons. 
> 
> And hey, thanks.

Bill was bored. Immortal and alone, he flicked through towns and universe like a teenage girl on Timber. Too bland, extremely boring, didn't agree with me. Then he paused, looking out on a town that didn't seem quite ordinary. He floated through, looking down on the community. It seemed normal on first glance, but there something else that attracted Bill to it.

There was a glow cloud ( **ALL HAIL THE MIGHTY GLOW CLOUD!!!** ) that rained dead animals and hooded figures. The dog park that nobody would go within five feet of, or the library nobody would go within 10 of. Angels, that people claim do not exist, and a ban on wheat and wheat by-products.

" _You will not find answers there, but you will certainly see what everyone is screaming about._ " The man on the radio said, Bill listening in. " _Welcome to Night Vale._ "

" _Hello, Listeners. Sorry if I feel a little down today. Carlos, the scientist, called me last night to say that the talk between us was not, in fact, a date. Uh, I was sssooooo embarrassed. I just feel different around him, wanting to run my hand through his dark perfect hair._

" _Sorry, I'm getting ahead of myself. Anyways, Carlos wanted me to state that the talk was to be strictly platonic, scientifically speaking. And platonic means just friends. I had to look up the definition after he left. Oh God, I hope he wasn't listening to all that._

" _And now the news, before I embarrass myself more than I already have. The city council ..._ " The voice on the radio continued to talk, but Bill wasn't really listening anymore. He was already heading back to his realm, thinking of what plans he had for this desert town.


	2. Meeting in the Dream Scape

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, this is my first attempt at a Gravity Falls/Night Vale Crossover. It's not that I haven't done crossover fanfic before (I have two Superwholocks up) just never this weird. Also, never done Gravity Falls before. That's going to be interesting. For that I say, please give me criticism. Tell me how to make the characters seem more canon, or that's whether or not it's good in general. I need feedback. 
> 
> Also, I just got my venom box. I'm scared. Because of that, and there are now spiders crawling out of a red velvet cupcake I just baked. Help me. 
> 
> And hey, thanks.

Cecil could tell it was a dream. Even without a Deciphering Reality Patch from scouts, it was fairly easy to tell. There was no floor, but yet his feet felt like they stood on something solid. Carlos was there too, standing about five feet away. He wanted to move closer to his boyfriend, but his feet didn't feel like obeying today. Neither man were in his pajamas though. They both were wearing an outfit they'd usually wear to work.

"Well, let's see who we've got." A being, with one eye and a triangle shaped body. He was completely yellow, except for a black top hat and bow tie. Cecil didn't like him.

"Where are we?" Carlos asked, his voice echoing in the space.

"This, lab coat, is the dream scape." The entity spoke, come closer to the two. "It's common ground between your reality and the nightmare realm where I live. Most come here in their dreams, but the human mind is too small and fragile to comprehend."

"Neat." He said, trying to retain every detail of this place in his mind.

"What do you want?" Cecil spoke, a small drop of anger seeping into his voice.

"Well, being a immortal being, I just got bored, that's all. You would understand, tattoos." He said, drifting around Cecil as he spoke. "So I've decided to mix things up a bit with another town I'm quite fond of."

"If you touch him, I swear..." Cecil muttered louder than intended.

"Or what?" Bill asked, silencing Cecil. "Look, it's obvious you have a thing for lab coat. How's the 'strictly platonic' thing going?"

"Not very well." Carlos interrupted, and both him and Cecil smirked. The classic _I-Know-What-You-Did-Last-Summer_ look.

"Well, I'd better go. Enjoy the little switch with Pine Tree." The entity said, literally fading out.   
Cecil then woke up, breathing heavily.

"Just a dream. All it was was a dream." He muttered to himself, and promptly fell back asleep. But he didn't notice that the bed was not his. Didn't notice he wasn't in Night Vale anymore.

In a similar way, Carlos woke up sweating in his bed. However, unlike Cecil, he did look around. He noticed the boy in his bed wasn't Cecil. He was young, about 12/13, with brown hair. He had a orange shirt on with grey shorts, and when he turned over, Carlos saw a birth mark on his forehead. He couldn't tell what it was because most of it was blocked by his hair.

He got out of bed, careful as to not disturb the boy sleeping next to him. Dawning on a pair of jeans, flannel and a lab coat, he left a note for the boy as to where he was in case he woke up and had questions. And of course he was going to have questions. But he had some questions of his own.

__**What was that dream?  
Who was that in our bed?   
How did he get here?   
Where was Cecil?   
How do we get Cecil back?**

All those questions flowed through Carlos's mind as he walked to his lab, about a good 5 minutes from where he and Cecil shared an apartment. When he walks through the door of his lab, he knew what he needs to do.


	3. Figuring it Out

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you guys for the support. It means so much to me. I will definitely continue. This and the next chapter are going to set up my descriptions of Carlos and Cecil. I usually don't do descriptions of them to let others imagine their headcanons (except if it's not human. I usually describe them as human), but Cecil's appearance will be plot relevant. As to how, I can only quote River Song with that. Spoilers.   
> ...  
> I don't remember why I wrote that. Why did I add this note? And did I draw those tally marks on my arms? I'm confused. 
> 
> And hey, thanks.

Dipper woke up in a bed that wasn't his. He wasn't sure where he was, or what happened to Mabel. All he saw was a chair with his clothes and backpack. Along with a note. He got up out of bed and got dressed before reading what it had to say.

_I don't know who you are, or what you're doing here. I just know that you probably have questions. I do too. If I'm not here when you wake up, I'm in the lab. It's about a five minute walk from here, just head toward the radio tower and it'll be on your right next to Big Rico's. Just be careful. This town is ... strange. I'll explain. -Carlos_

He didn't know Carlos, but Dipper figured it was his best shot at figuring out some answers. Checking his backpack quick, he sighed in relief that the journal was still there. He slung it over his shoulder, and started to head out to find Carlos.

The town was strange, and that was putting it modestly. At least 4 hooded figures passed him, and he could see lights about 100 feet in the air above an Arby's. Some people stared at their radios in utter silence, as if expecting it to start up any second. Some shouted at him, calling him 'An Interloper'. Luckily, he didn't have to go far, quickly spotting the lab next to the pizza place. Dipper rushed inside before people began throwing stuff.

The lab was a mess. Papers were cluttered on many of the available surfaces, in stacks that looked on the verge of collapse. Beakers were everywhere, some filled with liquid while others empty with residue from experiments prior. Dipper didn't see any reason to how the lab was organized, but it wasn't his lab to criticize.

He found Carlos in a private room in the back. It was much neater than the rest of the lab, but it was still cluttered with papers. Carlos was passed out over his desk, papers scattered all around him. Dipper glanced over the scientist's work, but none of it seemed particularly interesting.

"Uh, Carlos?" He said, lightly shoving his shoulder. Carlos didn't stir. Dipper tried again, grabbing a spot on Carlos's forearm. He woke with at start, pulling away from Dipper's hand. The papers he fell asleep on scattered, some falling on the floor by Dipper's feet.

"Ow!" He exclaimed, looking at the place where Dipper touched him.   
With this, Dipper was able to get a better look at Carlos. His skin was oaky, and he wore glasses over his brown eyes. His black hair was all over the place, with touches of grey at the temples. In sum, Carlos looked like a Latino Mark Ruffalo. Under the lab coat he wore was a blue t-shirt and jeans. The shirt was inside out.

"Sorry, I ... I didn't mean ..." Dipper stammered, before bending to pick up the papers all over the floor.

"It's okay." Carlos responded, bending down to help Dipper. "It just a chemical burn from where the librarian hit me. I should really get that checked out." Dipper wasn't listening at this point, his attention focused on one of the papers. "I'm Carlos, as you might have guessed. And you are ...?"

"Where did you see him?" Dipper asked, showing Carlos the paper he picked up. It was a drawing that Carlos drew of Bill, a simple yellow triangle with one eye and a top hat.

"It was in a dream I had last night. After I woke up, you just ... appeared where Cecil was. "Dipper stood up and began pacing the floor, leaving Carlos to finish cleaning up the papers. When he was done, he placed his research on the desk and look at the boy pacing the floor in front of him.

"What did Bill say?" He asked.

"Bill?" Carlos questioned back, and Dipper held up the photo Carlos drew earlier. His expression was serious. "He said he was bored, and he was going to have some fun with us and another town."

"Anything else?"

"I'm sorry. I just need a little more information about this. I don't even know your name." Dipper sighed, and proceeded to pull out a journal from his backpack as he explained.

"My name's Dipper. I come from Gravity Falls, Oregon, a town not as strange but still has many secrets to it. Who you saw in your dream was an entity called Bill Cipher." He held up the page from the journal, the name in Bill Cipher above a silhouette of the entity. "He's dangerous, and he can't be trusted." Dipper handed the journal off to Carlos, who looked at the pages with interest. "Now, if was there anything else he said?"

"He said one more thing. He said ... something about a switch with pine tree." Dipper became silent. "Do you know what that ..."

"Bill rarely refers to people by name. To him, I'm Pine Tree."

"Which most likely means Cecil is in Gravity Falls." Dipper nodded in agreement as Carlos handed the journal back to him. He threw it back into his backpack, before slinging the bag over his shoulder. "The tricky part is finding a way to get there."

"Easy. We're in America, right?" The scientist nodded. "So we drive." The scientist shook his head.

"Not that easy to leave Night Vale. Or to find it for the matter. I don't even remember how I got here."

"There's got to be a way." Dipper muttered.

"Well then." Carlos said, indicating the lab around him. "Let's get started."


	4. Meanwhile in Gravity Falls

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> To all the Fallers, we've got this. Sure I cried during Weirdmageddon: Take Back the Falls, but I know I'm not the only one. Heck, I'm even writing a Gravity Falls AU as I write this. I've been here since the beginning and I watched it through to the end. We've got this. 
> 
> To the Night Valers, who else has already listened to the first episode and is excited for Alice isn't Dead? I definitely am. Plus, I'm scared over the premiss of Station Management and the City Council dating. Imagine the breakup. Not happy thoughts. 
> 
> And hey, thanks.

"Mabel, you know I told you and Dipper not to disturb me." Ford protested as he was dragged upstairs by Mabel to her room. She was wearing her pink key sweater today, and it when she was putting it on that she noticed him. 

"Well this is about Dipper, Grunkle Ford."

"Couldn't you talk to Stanley about that? I'm not the person to consult on ... teenage problems."

"It's not ..." She started to stay as the reached the landing in front of her room. "Just look." Mabel pushed open the door to show what she really talking about. 

On Dipper's bed was a man who was certainly not Dipper. He was much older, with blonde hair and glasses. The clothes on the chair were gone and he wore them, a white button down shirt with a black vest and purple bow tie. Purple tattoos that looked like tentacles danced up and down his pale skin. He was playing with Waddles, his finger scratching him under the chin. 

Waddles, upon seeing Mabel, squealed and ran over to her. The man that was not Dipper turned his head, and briefly an eye tattoo could be seen on his forehead. He smiled at Ford and Mabel in the doorway. 

"Who are you and how did you get here?" Ford demanded, searching his pockets for a weapon he thought he left there. 

"And what happened to my brother!" Mabel shouted, Waddles behind her. 

"My name is Cecil. Cecil Palmer." The man who is not Dipper said calmly. "I don't know how I got here or where your brother is. Or who he is for the matter. I just went to bed, had a dream with a weird triangle ... demon thing, and woke up here. I then got dressed and played with her pig because it reminded me of my pet Khoshekh."

"Say that again." Ford asked Cecil. A look of puzzlement grew on the radio host's face.

"Her pig reminded me of ..."

"No, thing before that. Weird triangle demon thing?"

"Yeah. In a dream." Cecil held up his fingers in a triangle, and placed them around his eye. "Looked liked this."

"Bill" Ford muttered to himself. "That makes sense." He then proceeded to talk to himself, neither Cecil or Mabel questioning it. Cecil didn't because Carlos did this all the time when doing science. Mabel didn't because she was too busy crushing on Cecil. She walked away from Waddles, and sat next to Cecil on the bed. 

"Hi. I'm single, but you can just call me Mabel. Or the love of your life, whichever!" Cecil scooted away from Mabel a little. Mabel closed the gap. 

"I'm dating someone." He blurted out, and widen the gap between them. Mabel's smile dropped from her face. She got off the bed, and began to play with Waddles again. 

"Cecil." Ford spoke before the room elapsed into silence. "Where did you say you were from again?"

"Night Vale. But it's very hard to find."

"Well, I've got a bunch of equipment in the basement. And I've been experiment with some technologies like this. If I just altered some of my formulas..." Cecil tuned him out, as he did sometimes with Carlos, and nodded occasionally. He missed Carlos. He hoped Carlos was okay. 

"... And with a little time get you back to Night Vale and Dipper back here." Ford concluded. He didn't explain everything to Cecil, as he noticed that vacant look Stanley used to show when he didn't pay attention. "I just need some DNA samples in order to lock on to Night Vale easier."

"Of course." Cecil held his arm out for Ford to put the needle into. As the needle got closer, Cecil's tattoos naturally moved out of the way. 

"Fascinating." Ford exclaimed as he drew some blood from Cecil. "Do you mind if I study you?"

"Uh ... I think we have more pressing matters than ..."

"Right." He took the sample of blood, stashing it in his pockets for the time being. "I'll be downstairs if you need me." He left the attic, leaving Cecil and Mabel alone. 

"You know, he never told me his name." Cecil said, mostly to himself. 

"That's just Stanford for you." Mabel said. "He's a scientist so he's not very good around ... people. Plus he just came back from being stuck in another dimension for 30 years, so there's that too." Mabel responded. 

"Do you think he'll find a way to get me home?" Cecil asked her. 

"Of course." Mabel defended. Then, in a much quieter tone. "He has to. I don't know know what I'd do without Dipper." She had pulled out her Summer Scrapbook, and was looking at a picture of her and her brother together. "I miss him."

"I know the feeling." Cecil muttered back, looking at a photo of him and Carlos on his phone. The two sighed almost simultaneously, silently hoping Ford would find Night Vale sooner rather than later.


	5. Mistakes

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> "Yay! An update finally." You say in you're head as you read this note. You do not know what will happen in this chapter. You are excited for the update, and also scared for the update. The emotions are mixed inside of you right now, and it is confusing. This all happens in a matter of seconds, and you read on. 
> 
> And hey, thanks

"Alright, Carlos, I'm calling it a night. I'm going back to the apartment." Dipper said, already halfway out the door. 

"Alright. See you in the morning." Carlos called back, not moving from his seat in front of the computers. He and Dipper had been researching for a little over a week and found nothing. They were no closer from where they started, even after several sleepless nights staring at monitors trying to find some way to get Dipper & Cecil home. Well ... sleepless nights and coffee fueled days for Carlos. He was determined to get his boyfriend back, and this endless dedication would all pay off soon enough. 

He sighed, picking up a photo of him and Cecil. The photo had been taken by Abby, Cecil's sister, the day of the parade of hooded figures sometime after the parade, shortly after they started dating. Carlos was laying in Cecil's lap, a bucket of popcorn in his own. He was laughing at Cecil, whose hands were above his head in victory because he had finally caught a kernel in his mouth. It was his favorite picture of them together, this purely spontaneous moment. 

"I miss you, Cecil." He said to the empty lab. "I want you here. With me."

"I think I might be able to help with that." A second voice chimed in. Time (or at least a sense of time, as time does not actually exist in Night Vale) felt like it slowed down, as the world became black and white with two exceptions. Himself, including the photo he was holding, and his early sketch of Bill in front of the monitors. The eye on the sketch blinked first, before the limbs began to reach out of the drawing. Soon, Bill was out in the open, his full body hovering in front of Carlos. 

"No" He said simply, knowing what he was going to ask. 

"C'mon, Lab Coat. Don't you trust me?" Bill questioned. "I'm just your average demon from the second dimension."

"I'm not going to trust you. Not after what Dipper told me. Not after what you did to Cecil."

"You're going to listen to Pine Tree? After you've known him for, what, a week? Just take the deal."

"How ... How exactly do you talk? You've got no mouth. I've been mean to ask the Faceless Old ..."

"Don't change the subject." Bill interrupted, starting to get a little mad. "You and I both know that I am the only hope at reuniting you and that radio host boyfriend of yours. Just trust me, and this nightmare will soon be over." He held out his had, which was enveloped in a blue flame. "You ready to make a deal?"

"No" Carlos responded, though not as strong as he wanted to be. "I'm not gullible enough to fall for another one of your tricks." He back away, trying to stay strong. He believed what Dipper told him, and this was the only way to get Cecil home. Bill Cipher could not be trusted. 

"Memory cleared." A female voice spoke from the far left computer. Carlos became panicked, rushing over and typing in commands in an futile attempt to save his work. 

"Oh, look at that!" Bill exclaimed, the sarcasm obvious in his voice. "Your precious work is getting erased. Who could've done something like that?" Carlos didn't respond. Too busy trying to save his precious research, most of which was on trying to save Cecil. 

"No no no no no!" He muttered, followed by his hand slamming the keyboard as another computer's memory was erased. 

"Well, that information was useless anyways. It's not like you have an all powerful demon who can render that information obsolete by doing everything for you."

"You know my answer." Carlos responded through gritted teeth, trying not to let Bill see him waver. 

"Suit yourself." He shrugged as a third computer's information deleted itself. "My deal's still on the table." 

"Memory cleared." The fourth computer chimed, but Carlos ignored it. Instead, his eyes fell on the photo he still held in his hand. He smiled at how ridiculous his boyfriend looked, and how happy they looked at this perfect moment. 

"C'mon." Bill taunted him. "You love him. You know he'd do the same thing if I'd offered him the same deal."

"He would, wouldn't he?" Carlos muttered almost in agreement. 

"Then why wait?" Bill's hand once again became engulfed in a blue flame, and he extended it toward the scientist. "Ready to make that deal?"

"And ... And the original terms still stand?" Carlos asked. 

"They stand." The demon confirmed, seeing the hesitancy in Carlos's eyes. "For him." The hesitancy faded, replaced by pure determination. Hook, line, and sinker. 

"Deal." Carlos shook Bill's hand, and his own hand became surrounded by the blue flame. The photo of the two of them, of Cecil and Carlos, fluttered to the ground. To Carlos, this deal meant one step closer to Cecil. To Bill, it was something much different.

"Excellent."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you feel the need, please leave any cries of frustration in the comments. 
> 
> Please don't kill me.


	6. Truth or Dare or Don't

"Lick that elbow! Lick that elbow!" Mabel chanted at Grenda. The four of them, Mabel, Grenda, Candy and Cecil, were playing a game of Truth or Dare or Don't in Mabel's room. Mabel had insisted Cecil play with them, and he was honestly having a blast.

"30 seconds." Cecil said, looking down at his phone. Grenda had chosen dare last turn, and Candy had challenged her to like her elbow in under two minutes. Otherwise she was going to have to kiss Waddles. Cecil kept time, as he was the only one with either a watch or cellphone.

"Ugh. These seems impossible." She complained, before resuming the task.

"20 seconds."

"Lick that elbow! Lick that elbow!"

"I don't think that's helping Mabel." Candy stated, and Mabel quieted down.

"Sorry." She apologized. "I just get excited by these things."

"10 seconds, Grenda."

"9 ... 8 ..." Mabel counted down, leaning over Cecil's shoulder. Candy soon joined in the countdown.

"You've got this, Grenda." Candy encouraged.

"... 3 ... 2 ... 1!" Mabel shouted.

"Time." Cecil confirmed.

"Pucker up!" Mabel teased. She grabbed Waddles from off her bed. She waved Waddles in front of Grenda's face quickly, before steadying it so Grenda could kiss it. And she did, with a little more passion than everyone else was comfortable with.

"Get a room you too!" Cecil teased, while Candy threw some of the confetti on the ground at them.

"I ship it." Candy added.

"Gompers and Waddles for life!" Mabel defended. "May death do them part."

"I regret nothing!" Grenda shouted in her normal tone, finally breaking away from Waddles. The pig ran away toward the door, but did not leave the attic. Instead he positioned himself in the corner of the room.

"Alright, Cecil's turn." Mabel resumed. "Truth or Dare or Don't?"

"Truth." He said after a moment of hesitation.

"Tell us every detail about ... the first girl you ever kissed!" The others leaned in excitedly, awaiting the radio host's answer.

"Actually, I have never kissed a girl that wasn't related to me." He admitted. Candy and Grenda looked ecstatic at this answer.

"I've never kissed a boy before." Candy stated.

"Kiss me!" Grenda persisted.

"No me!" Candy tried to get closer to him.

"Hold the presses!" Mabel shouted, and both girls stopped swooning over Cecil for a minute to listen to Mabel. "You told me you had a girlfriend."

"I said I was in a relationship. Never mentioned a girlfriend." It was silent at first. Then all three girls started squealing simultaneously. Questions started flying, and all of them were direct to Cecil.

"What's his name?"  
"How long you been dating?"  
"Is he cute?"  
"What's his job?"  
"When did you first kiss him?"  
"When did you know you liked him?"  
"Who was the first boy you ever kissed?"

"Ok ok ok." Cecil said, trying to quiet the girls down. "Which do you want to hear first? Current boyfriend or first kiss?"

"First kiss!" They all said in unison.

"Alright. So, it was at my High School graduation, and I honestly don't remember most of that night. All I know is that I woke up handcuffed to my best friend, Earl. Don't know how, but I did. And so I said to him, 'guess this night wasn't as memorable as I hoped, huh?' And then he turned and kissed me on the lips. And after he broke away from me, Earl then said, 'I don't know, Palmer. Seems pretty memorable to me.'" More squealing filled the room.

"That was adorable." Grenda said.

"Is Earl your boyfriend, now?" Candy asked.

"No." Cecil said, as he scrolled through the photos on his phone. "Ah, that's the one. This is my boyfriend." He showed them of him and Carlos, the two spread out on a picnic blanket. Cecil's arm was slightly in the frame, but it didn't seem to matter. The couple was smiling, with Carlos's head leaning on Cecil's shoulder. Toward the bottom of the photo was their hands together & intertwined. Neither of them seemed focused on the camera.

"Your so adorable!" Grenda exclaimed.

"When did you start dating him?" Candy asked.

"What's his name?!?" Mabel asked simultaneously.

"His name is Carlos. And we started dating a little over 2 years ago." Cecil then went into detail about Carlos as he often did, describing all the little details. How they met, the day they finally got together, their first date and kiss. The girls interrupted occasionally with squealing and rants on how Cecil and Carlos were the perfect couple. They forgot about the game, and spent the rest of the night like this.

**~•~**

The lab under the shack was a mess. Papers cluttered everywhere, and scattered pieces of debris from the portal lay on the floor. Ford wasn't in the lab at the moment, as Stan had convinced him an hour ago to get some well deserved sleep. The scientist had been at to for 3 days trying to correct his formula for inter-dimensional travel, and still had no results.

"Haven't you learned anything from me, Sixer?"


End file.
